1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an ink jet recording head, a method for manufacturing such head, and an ink jet recording apparatus. More particularly, the invention relates to an ink jet recording head formed by laminating a substrate having discharge energy generating elements and a plate having a liquid chamber retaining recording liquid (ink), and a method for manufacturing the head, and also, relates to an ink jet recording apparatus using such head.
2. Related Background Art
Conventionally, there are known various types of ink jet recording heads that discharge recording droplets from the discharge ports. For example, there is the one that discharges recording droplets by the application of pressure changes created in liquid paths by means of deformation of piezoelectric elements or the one in which a pair of electrodes are further provided in addition to the piezoelectric elements in order to cause the recording droplets to deflect, or the one that utilizes thermal energy for discharging recording droplets from the discharge ports by means of heat generating elements arranged in each of ink paths to generate heat rapidly, among others.
Of these types, the ink jet recording head that uses the method whereby to discharge recording droplets by utilization of thermal energy is given particular attention because, with this method, it is possible to record in high resolution with the arrangement of liquid discharge ports, such as orifices, in high density, which form flying droplets by discharging recording droplets, and to make the entire body compact as a recording head by the effective utilization of the IC technologies and micro-machining techniques whose technical advancement and reliability are enhanced significantly in the semiconductor industrial field in recent years, thus making the elongation and surfacing (two dimensional arrangement) of the head possible, among other advantages, and also, because it is easier to provide a multiple nozzle and implement a highly densified assembling at lower manufacturing costs resulting from the good productivity of the heads when fabricated on a large-scale production.
Usually, however, the recording head is formed by laminating and fixing the heater board, ceiling plate, and base plate, which are made of different materials. Particularly, for a recording head of a multiple type where the discharge energy generating elements are arranged in a number corresponding to the recording width of a recording medium, the head is subjected to warping, cracking, and other damages occurring due to difference in thermal expansion coefficient of each of the materials used for forming the head, which tends to produce adverse effects due to temperature changes or the like.
As a result, not only the image quality is degraded, but also, in some cases, a problem is encountered which destroys a recording head.
Also, the discharge ports of a head that discharge recording liquid are often produced by cutting or grinding the portion where discharge ports are formed after the heater board and the ceiling plate are adhesively bonded. Here, since the heater board and the ceiling are made by different materials having different machinability, it is difficult to process each of the surfaces smoothly to finish them uniformly flat without flash or the like.